


Child of Mages

by imsuing



Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, 逆転裁判 | Gyakuten Saiban | Ace Attorney
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, contains aa4 spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-15
Updated: 2015-06-15
Packaged: 2018-04-04 06:21:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4128114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imsuing/pseuds/imsuing
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Phoenix didn't know exactly how Trucy managed to talk him into travelling to the College of Winterhold with her. This part of the country was the epitome of Oblivion frozen over. The sabre cats, ice wraiths, and bears didn't really improve this image. The carriage getting stuck in a rock pile way past Windhelm didn't help either. Now Phoenix and his adopted elf daughter must traverse from the middle of nowhere to a ghost town with their carriage driver who is none other than Larry. (skyrim au)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Child of Mages

**Author's Note:**

> I've been writing this steadily over the past couple months. I need more practice...  
> Oh man, and then I realize there's like no legal system at all in pretty much all of Tamriel. The guards do pretty much everything and murder investigations aren't usually emphasized if the jarls/counts don't care.  
> ... the dovahkiin is either franziska or edgeworth and no one can stop me.  
> I mean, it could be both. I'm pretty sure, canonically, there can totally be more than one dragonborn at one time.  
> No matter what, Gumshoe is their faithful friend who's best with enormous weapons.  
> \--  
> here are my race headcanons for them: phoenix (imperial), larry (nord), trucy (altmer), lamiroir (altmer), adrian (altmer)... and for the characters that don't appear in here, gumshoe (nord), franziska (nord), edgeworth (redguard? i'm still thinking. i think redguards are good with swords and his name is... yeah. swords.), all the feys (dunmer), the gavins (um... i'm still thinking about this), and since trucy is altmer, apollo is too  
> ...  
> matt engarde is khajiit. fight me.

"I have a hard time believing Winterhold used to be as great as they said," Phoenix said, tempted to draw closer to his daughter who was practicing a flame spell as they exited the cavern. "How can anyone stand this weather?" The inside of Whistling Mine had been much cozier than the bitter air outdoors.

"Nords, daddy, nords!" said Trucy, sheathing the spell. "I heard they can survive in the tundra pretty well!"

"Yeah, well, they may be able to survive it but they might not like it,"he replied with a strain to his voice. "I just think they should give a college a better location. Like by the beach."

"Well... technically you could say it is by the beach!"

"It may be by the water," said Larry, suddenly approaching them from behind, "but it's no beach without fair maidens, dude!" His voice dropped. "In any case, college women _and_  mage women are kind of out of my league. What if she gets mad and turns me into a cow or a horse or a dog or something?"

"They very well should!" Phoenix huffed, and pointed at him. "Trucy, turn this careless case of a carriage driver into a horse, and then we may actually get somewhere soon!"

"H-hey don't yell at me! I loved that horse! How was I to know that at the same time our carriage got stuck, a bear would come and m-maul my poor Horsie down like that?" The tears in Larry's eyes formed almost immediately at the thought. Phoenix often wondered how they would have gotten out of that situation if the Winterhold guards hadn't already been patrolling nearby. The three managed to receive some supplies from Whistling Mine after the miners noticed Phoenix had a little spending money left.

"Well, don't expect me to buy you a new horse and cart. You're gonna have to go into a new trade," he said. "Like... water carrying. Or masonry. Or prostitution. Not sure how you could mess any of those up."

"Daddy, what's masonry?" asked Trucy, who Phoenix did not realize was so deeply invested in their conversation.

"Oh it's like... building stuff," he said. "He has to be at least competent enough to rebuild this forsaken province. No offense Trucy, but once you get settled into the college, I'm going back down south where it's not snowing all year."

"Not all the way back to Cyrodiil?" she said pleadingly, clutching her brooch in disbelief. "Oh c'mon! Stay in Ivarstead at the very least! It was a nice little town, wasn't it? It's not as far..."

"I'll think about it, kid." He knew Trucy knew it wasn't true. He peered into the mist. "Trucy, is that what we're looking for?"

"That's... that looks like a massive figure in the distance, alright!"

"You see, this is why I'll always be a carriage driver, Nick," said Larry smugly. "I, unlike you, know that's definitely the College of Winterhold."

"Of course you do..."

Twenty minutes passed before they reached the first building. The streets were completely empty. Some hold banners waved on one of the longhouses and a steady stream of smoke emit from the tavern. Thankfully, they arrived just before it had become dark. The last place they set up camp in had been in the middle of the volcanic tundra. Phoenix swore he heard a dragon roar.

"Talk about a warm welcome," said Phoenix.

"Oh, it's always like this every time I've brought someone here. Not that people request to come here that often," replied Larry. An icy wind chill bore down directly on their faces.

"I say we try the inn then-"

"Wait, but-"

"Trucy?"

"It's not that late!" she said. "I can visit the College now, and then-"

"Trucy..."

"But it's right there!" she said. There seemed to be no stopping her because just before he could deny her, she ran off.

"H-hey WAIT!" he cried, running after her. Larry followed for several paces but quailed at the imposing sight of the huge, deteriorated structure.

Similarly, Trucy began to hesitate at the sight of a tall elven mage at the gateway, who was gazing into her eyes as if measuring her worth at a moment's notice. Phoenix felt like he had seen her before. "May I-" she said, her voice shaking with earnest, "My name is Trucy Wright and... may I enter the college? I can do magic just as well as any other apprentice, I swear!"

The Altmer mage seemed not to expect such directness from her, but did not question it. Instead, she shifted her glance from Trucy to Phoenix, who had stopped at the steps a few feet behind his daughter. "I am... Adrian. Trainer of destruction magic at the college... and may I ask how old exactly are you?" she asked, looking as if she disapproved of Phoenix in some way. Phoenix still couldn't place who she was.

"I'm... I'm 15... and fourteen days. I know that sounds young, but I can learn!" she argued. "I even spent all night practicing my flame spell-"

"That remains to be seen," the mage Adrian interrupted. "And I assume if on some chance you do prove worthy enough to enter the college, you're father, or er-" She glanced at Larry skeptically. "Your fathers will also prove their ability at illusion spells by casting invisibility and never appearing in this town again. Am I wrong?"

"Weeeell..." Trucy fidgeted with her cloak for a moment and looked up thoughtfully. "Why would Imperials want to live in Winterhold?" Phoenix couldn't help snorting.

"A fair response as any," said Adrian dryly. "Fine. I'll let you test. However, I don't want to see your flame spell. I want to see you cast a ward."

"... a ward?" Trucy said, her voice raising an octave. Phoenix put his head in his hands.

"You... know what a ward is, yes?" Trucy bit her lip. "I'm sorry. I know you all spent a lot of effort travelling here, but this college can't accept such a young apprentice who isn't even aware of the fundementals of practical magic! Not to mention, the danger you may face if Nords found out you left your young child here!"

"They're hardly accepting of it in Cyrodiil either," said Phoenix dryly. "There are barely any court wizards left anymore there. None that would associate with me."

Adrian raised her already down-turned eyebrows. "And who are you, may I ask?"

"Phoenix Wright."

"I knew it. I've heard about you. That you used illusion magic to 'solve' murder cases in the Imperial City," she said, her tone detached of emotion or heavy judgment. "But clearly that's not true, if your own daughter doesn't even know what a ward is."

"It's like a shield, isn't it?" said Trucy bitterly.

"I don't know! That's why I want to study here! To learn."

"Trucy, easy," said Phoenix, only glancing at her momentarily before looking back at Adrian again. She didn't look familiar at all, but her name... was she the one from those two messy cases in Cyrodiil? "Your observation would be correct anyway, since I practice about as much magic as the Jarl of this hold. I hear he hates this college."

"Um, Nick," said Larry, who had drawn closer already. "It's kind of cold now. I'm going to slip into the inn."

Phoenix sighed. "So... it's a no, then, right?"

"Our college has no set age limit, Mr Wright. However, Trucy, I must reject your request to enter the College at this time," she replied formally. Trucy who had gazed at her sadly, suddenly jerked up and glared hard at the mage gatekeeper.

Phoenix noticed this. "Come on, Trucy. We should get some sleep then before our trip home."

Then, Phoenix thought he heard a far away shriek piercing the sky in the distance. "Is that...? What kind of loud experiment are you conducting in that college of yours anyway?"

Adrian looked upwards at the sky and locked her gaze between the mountains and sky. She replied, "I've grown used to things like that. There are more dangerous things at the College than loud noises. I hope you understand why I'm reluctant to take your daughter in, especially in times like these."

The two (who were already abandoned by Larry) turned away from Adrian who watched them go without discernible expression. Phoenix didn't notice the bitter cold anymore and his cheeks tinged hot with shame. _This entire trek across Skyrim had been all for nothing_? But once they reached the steps of the inn and opened the door, Trucy muttered to Phoenix, "Her lip twitched a little when she said 'at this time'. Do you think that could mean...?"

"Mean what?" asked her father as he shut the door behind him and passed his satchel to her.

Trucy ceased responding verbally and shrugged.

"Don't be too afraid to be overly hopeful," said Phoenix, trying to hide his slightly cringed face. "It's something we need right now..."

Larry had at the very least been courteous enough to buy them drinks with the fare that they had paid for the trip. Larry gave Trucy what looked a lot like hot milk. She drank from her goblet deeply, taking in the warmth where there felt like none inside her.

"It tastes like a sweet roll!" she finally exclaimed when she was able to string together coherent thought. Larry laughed, nodded, and handed Phoenix a drink.

"This is?"

"Wine," said Larry simply.  
"What's so special about wine or mead or those things anyway?" grumbled Trucy, sinking into her own cup. "They just make you stupid."

"Oh. Uh... I'm sorry then, Trucy," he said, but he made no motion to reject Larry's gift.

He took a sip and seemed to melt in his chair before their eyes. He barely could contain a grin. "Is this the wine I think it is?"

"If the wine you're thinking of is Tamika's-"

"-West Weald Wine!" finished Phoenix, looking into his cup fondly. Then he turned to his daughter. "Me and him grew up together, you know! He tried to convince me to sneak out and steal a bottle from my parents for us to share! Do you know how much more chores they gave me after that? Cleaning horse stalls was enough work on its own..."

"Oh man, his mom told my mom and we both were stuck plowing for like a month!"

"Not that you have any right to complain since you instigated it," mumbled Phoenix. Trucy looked from her father to Larry again, with some wonder.

She paused before squeaking, "you two were friends as kids?!"

"Friends? I wouldn't go that far. Personally, I'd say we were tipping cows before we were tall enough to see cows eye-to-eye," muttered Phoenix and Trucy stared blankly at him.

"Don't listen to him, he's so mean!" Larry cried, deliberately trying to keep Phoenix out of her line of sight.

Trucy stared blankly for a second more, glancing from Larry, to somewhere in space.

"But daddy," she began, and trailed off a moment before continuing, "I thought you said tipping cows was impossible!"

"It's just... an expression, Trucy..."

The door to the inn flew open again, seemingly without a person to push it. A gut-wrenching screetch registered from the outside. The inhuman sound made the hair in Phoenix's fur cap prickle. What Phoenix heard next made him wish he wasn't so against staying back at the freezing mine.

"A dragon has been seen approaching!" yelled a familiar mage, an enormous staff clutched in her right hand and what appeared to be a flame spell in her left. The mage Adrian was sweating even in the bitter cold. "Evacuate to... to... go through the pass toward Saarthal!"

The inn's customers seemed almost a little used to this sort of chaos. Phoenix knew the people of Winterhold had a bit of trouble with the college, but still; a dragon was no laughing matter. If a cool, in control mage like Adrian was panicked about this, then it must be urgent, right?

Then, Phoenix realized he definitely knew this mage.

Larry was stingy enough to keep the Wrights waiting as he gathered his rucksack and bottle of wine. Even the innkeeper seemed to understand him and gave him his dinner which had just finished cooking. Other than the innkeeper, the three travelers were the last to leave. There were all sorts of mages about the town.  _I wonder if these mages are even allowed to leave their college. Then again, that could technically be true with a Jarl like that..._

Adrian was in charge of escorting the townspeople it seemed. She apologized to them frantically and appeared so inelegant under pressure. She alone was the College of Winterhold's PR department? No wonder the town was in such disrepair.

He knew though, that this was her duty because she wasn't a very powerful mage. It had been about six years since he last saw Adrian Andrews. He was sure it was her. He first met her in Skingrad when she was the manager of that actor Matt Engarde who hired an assassin to murder a rival theatre actor, both seeming to specialize in Akaviri period pieces. Then later in the Imperial City, she offered an exhibit on his friend's village's culture.

_Oh, I miss the adventurer life..._

The dragon suddenly swooped directly over them. Larry screamed the loudest. Fire blasted directly at them, and before he knew what he was doing, Phoenix replied with an enormous ward that covered about half of the people of Winterhold. No one had time to react, mostly because they couldn't see him through the mist, but he knew for certain that Adrian noticed. She trailed behind, only helping those who lagged from the rest.

In one horrible moment, Phoenix realized he couldn't find Trucy. _She was right next to me when I cast that ward, right?_ He stopped, and Larry moved on without him. _I expected that._

He ventured backwards, towards Adrian with worried eyes. It was no wonder he didn't recognize her. She must have paid big gold to change her face like that. "Where's Trucy?"  
It probably wasn't possible for Adrian to look any more overwhelmed than she was. All she could do was glance at him helplessly before raising her ward again as a dragon passed overhead.

He decided to take a risk and use a detection charm. He was sure Adrian recognized him too. He was also sure she knew he was incredibly adept with magic, but not for immoral intentions like he had been accused.

He waited a few seconds for the innkeeper to stop glancing at him with suspicion before casting the charm for a few seconds and looking around wildly. Two people lay at the bottom of a slope, one bent over the other, as he could see. Phoenix quickly stumbled down the hill, twisting his foot and rolling the rest of the way. When he forced himself up, wincing in pain, he found Trucy, her hands glowing bright, and an older woman in strange robes. Her face was badly burned and Trucy was trying again and again to heal it. Finally, she seemed to gain some progress, but the woman's face was a little disfigured.

"Trucy!" he said, not knowing why since she had already glanced up at him. She moved to care for his foot, but he pushed her away. "It's not safe out here, we have to go!"

Trucy helped the woman up, who in turn helped Phoenix up onto his feet. _Ow._

Tears welled up in his eyes but when the dragon swooped above them again, he didn't care who saw. Mostly on one foot, he hopped up the hill again, using his left hand to help distribute weight. The woman hadn't let go of his other hand since she had helped him up. For some reason a thought itched in his mind and he wondered how Larry was doing. _Damn you, Larry. He's probably already at the tomb already, chatting up someone's wife!_

By now, the dragon flew towards the town and ignored the now-refugees. "What do these dragons even want?" squeaked Trucy, who ran further ahead.

"Um, I don't know. Gold? Or maybe they wanted to enroll at the college?" groaned Phoenix, probably slightly buzzed from that wine he gulped down.

"Dragons want our submission," the woman muttered to him. "Most likely."

Adrian caught up with the three. "Lamiroir! I'm so sorry I didn't see you!"

"I suppose you can say I didn't see you either," she replied, and pawed for Adrian's shoulder.

After Adrian healed Phoenix's foot, it took about ten minutes to get to Saarthal with all the snow piled. Phoenix was, to say the least, freezing to death. "Why couldn't the College be like... the College of Falkreath or something?"

No one answered him, too exhausted and annoyed. Or perhaps, they had heard that question many times before. He silently considered whether it would be easier to refurbish the tomb into an alternative dragon-proof Winterhold town. However, he didn't express the thought aloud for fear a Nord would reply with an axe to the face for his insolence. There were several sets of steps and ramps that made Phoenix feel incredibly ill as he crossed over them.  

He didn't trust wood bridges, not after that... incident at the mystic temple years ago. He kept a tight grip on Trucy's arm. The old tomb was dusty and smelled absolutely rotten and Phoenix could hardly believe this place was strong enough to keep a dragon out. In his experience, old tombs could fall apart from violent magic use. He shuddered at the thought.

"I would like to thank you for saving me, little Nord," the woman Lamiroir said to Trucy as she removed her hood.

Trucy crinkled her eyebrows together and took note that she was hit by the light of the torches too. "I'm... I'm Altmer, Ms... uh-"

"Lamiroir," she said, taking her hands out to grasp Trucy's. Phoenix's eyes widened at the sight of her enormous bracelet. "I'm so glad you came to help me. It was very brave. If you'd like, I could help you with your healing spells. They're a little tricky, but they're very important in any situation."

"I sure would! Let's go!"

Phoenix watched in awe as she and Trucy moved to a more spacious area to practice.  _That bracelet is-_

"Mr. Wright, we need to talk," said Adrian, attempting to hold together her own poker face only to seem wide eyed and angry instead.  _Uh-oh._

The two of them turned through a dark passageway and Adrian cast light spell throughout the ruins. She looked around before whispering to him. "I doubt you recognize me under this disguise-"

"I did."

"Oh. Oh damn," she replied, tightening her palm into a fist. "Do you know how much money I spent on this? I thought it was rather convincing..."

"I'll admit it was, but I think I could sense something...wrong," said Phoenix. "You have a very... distinct personality I suppose."

"No, I just hired some inept illusionist to redo my face," she said.

"But... why?"

"Matt Engarde's escaped," said Adrian gravely. "Dragons have appeared. Not to mention your ban from Tamrielic courts has hindered justice in this empire. You lying to me earlier didn't help much either."

"Listen, I'm... touchy about that subject, okay? It's not like I go out of my way to get into situations where I use magic anymore."

"Why are you really here, then?" said Adrian, her confidence rising. "There's no reason to send your daughter to the College if you already know magic yourself."

Phoenix fell silent.

"Well?"

"I... I know it'll sound hard to believe, but this is the safest place I could think of for Trucy," said Phoenix softly. "I think you know I've been framed. I was solving crimes in the courts of Jarls and Counts and I never once used trickery or illusion spells. It was all clear cut. You know?"

"I... I understand," she said.

"But I know now," he said. They had entered some untouched part of the ruins. Trucy was gone. "That whoever lead me to the path of ruin is more ruthless and dangerous than I can even begin to imagine."

"What?"

"Recently, a powerful member of the Elder Council was arrested for homicide," said Phoenix. "Kristoph Gavin."

"Oh..." Clearly this information meant very little to her.

"Kristoph Gavin happened to be the only member of the Elder Council to go against my ban from royal courts. I always thought it was a little strange. I had little clue who he was. He became very close to me, but I felt something wrong, always," he said. "Then in Bruma, where I worked as a bard at the inn, he manipulated circumstances so I'd stand accused of murder."

"But... he was found guilty, right?"

"Yes, but you never know what could happen. He could twist fate even inside his cell and not need to lift a finger. He could have cronies. Or he could escape. It's not impossible anymore. You know Engarde."

"How did you manage to fight him back?"

"A little help from his student," said Phoenix, smiling grimly. "I told him he could join my cause at any time. He doesn't like me very much though. Trucy thinks he'll come around. However, we both agreed that protesting against the empire's legal system is extremely dangerous in these times, with the Thalmor and all."

"I... know," she said. "There are a lot of Altmer at the college, but I assure you that they are completely apolitical and only want to study magic in peace."

"Oh?"

Adrian frowned. "Well, we have one Thalmor adviser so..." She shook her head. "That's why I can't accept Trucy. Not now. Not until he's no longer at the college."

"Of course," he muttered, and it was silent for a while.

Suddenly, Adrian looked like she wanted to say something but wouldn't say it. If she didn't appear troubled already, she seemed anxious now. Phoenix allowed her half a minute to mull over her thoughts.

"Well, I can think of one arrangement..."

"And that is...?"

"I could come with you. I can watch over Trucy when you're not around. In fact, I'd be willing to disguise her as my own. After all, she is the same race as me. As long as you stay away from former residences, no one will notice a thing."

"You'd... you'd do that? Why?"

"Well, you did help me out all those years ago. It's only fair for me to return the favor, because you're my good friend," said Adrian, but Phoenix didn't need his weakened magatama to know Adrian was lying blatantly.

"It's about Engarde, isn't it?"

Adrian paused. "No."

_No? Crap._

"Actually, I, uh," she said, not meeting his eyes. "I was hoping you'd fix my face back to the way it was."

"O-oh," he said, trying not to giggle like a gossiping schoolchild. His practiced stoic expression wasn't working so well.

"Engarde is weak and spineless. De Killer would gladly slit his throat if he came anywhere near and I doubt even the Dark Brotherhood would hear his pleas. I don't need to hide my face, just like you don't try to hide yours."

"And that woman with Trucy? She knows about her now," said Phoenix, with a little worry in his voice.

"That's Lamiroir. You've never heard of her? She's very famous back in the Summerset Isles," said Adrian, smiling. "She's a bard and she has a young apprentice who can't see a thing. They're usually inseparable, but I insisted the boy stay at the college while we took care of the rest."

"Why didn't you just lead the townspeople to the college instead of all the way to Saarthal?"

"As if they'd trust us enough to do that," said Adrian, looking at the wall towards the general direction of the townspeople. "Even if they did, they'd wreck the place or get hurt. Nords. No offense to your, uh-partner?"

"Carriage driver. He's not my husband. He's just barely even my friend," said Phoenix, rolling his eyes.

"Oh yes," she said while chuckling. "Well, there's no need to worry about Lamiroir. She's going over to Solitude for a huge festival in a couple months. She's just here to spice up her performance, you see."

"Well then that's good.I'll go back to the Imperial City first. You get passage to Solitude and I'll meet you there at that festival," said Phoenix, satisfied with this information. Then, he heard a loud explosion from above. Possibly the dragon. Then, he thought about the draugr riddled about the ruins and easily disturbed by the living. "Let's just hope we get out of this alive, okay?"

**Author's Note:**

> spoiler alert: they totally do get out alive of course  
> If I got anything horribly wrong TES lore wise, feel free to tell me (but don't be rude).  
> Uh, I tried to make this work in the context of aa4 but things got weird, so I probably got aa lore wrong as well.  
> I love both these game okay.


End file.
